1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an exchange servicing development support system and more particularly to an exchange servicing development support system having a function of automatically replacing an edited content.
2. Description of the Related Art
A well known conventional exchange servicing development support system is disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. Hei7-168708. This disclosed exchange servicing development support system contains a scenario editor having an editor controlling section and an editor generating section. The editor controlling section is adapted to make an inquiry corresponding to a menu describing file in which a content of an inquiry to an exchange servicing software developer is defined, via an input/output device. The editor generating section is used to internally construct data in a tree structure format based on information selected and inputted by the exchange servicing software developer. This tree structure data can be stored, by the editor controlling section, in a service file as a consequence of editing.
Moreover, the tree structure data can be stored in a service code file using an output format defined in the menu describing file. This service code file can be converted to a program code containing a library call to implement the exchange servicing by using another unit, e.g., a program generator.
Thus, the exchange servicing development support system allows exchange servicing software developers to obtain the program code without any knowledge of a programming language, achieving easy development of exchange servicing software and improvement of its development efficiency.
However, the conventional technology has a shortcoming. That is, in the conventional system, since there is no regard for a change of an interface such as a library, if the interface such as libraries is changed, the menu describing file is so changed and, as a result, the content of the inquiry is changed accordingly, causing loss of compatibility with a service file already created in the exchange servicing development support system.
In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide an exchange servicing development support system wherein definition contents can be automatically replaced and generation codes to new specifications can be created, even if interfacing is changed, only by reading servicing definition result files stored in accordance with old specifications.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exchange servicing development support system having a function of automatically replacing an edited content comprising:
an input/output device;
a data processing unit being operated under program control; and
a storage device;
wherein the data processing unit having:
a menu description decoding program stored in the storage device for constructing menu data by reading a menu describing file in which a content of an inquiry about a menu is defined;
a file decoding program for reading a servicing definition result file, stored in the storage device, in which designing specifications for exchange servicing are defined, while referencing to the menu data, when an exchange servicing file already edited is re-edited and its code is re-created, and for constructing service tree structure data, and for re-constructing the service tree structure data in a form in accordance with a description of information about compatibility when the description of information about compatibility exists at a corresponding part of the menu data;
a service editing program for making an inquiry about a menu in a form in accordance with the menu data and for making the result reflected on the service tree structure data;
a file encoding program for performing processing of storing the service tree structure data as the servicing definition result file when the edited result is stored in the storage device; and
a code generating program for creating a generation coding file in a format designated by the menu data in accordance with the service tree structure data.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an exchange servicing development support system having a function of automatically replacing an edited content for maintaining automatic compatibility with exchange servicing definition results edited in the exchange servicing development support system before designing specifications for exchange servicing are changed, comprising:
an input/output device;
a data processing unit being operated under program control; and
a storage device;
wherein the data processing unit described above having:
a menu description decoding program stored in the storage device for constructing menu data by reading a menu describing file in which a content of an inquiry about a menu is defined;
a file decoding program for reading a servicing definition result file, stored in the storage device, in which designing specifications for exchange servicing are defined, while referencing to the menu data, when exchange servicing file already edited is re-edited and its code is re-created, and for constructing service tree structure data, and for re-constructing the service tree structure data in a form in accordance with a description of information about compatibility when the description of information about compatibility exists at a corresponding part of the menu data;
a service editing program for making an inquiry about a menu in a form in accordance with the menu data and for making the result reflected on the service tree structure data;
a file encoding program for performing processing of storing the service tree structure data as the servicing definition result file when the edited result is stored in the storage device; and
a code generating program for creating a generation coding file in a format designated by the menu data in accordance with the service tree structure data.
In the foregoing, a preferable mode is one wherein not only contents of inquiries about various parameters for implementing the exchange servicing but also contents required, when specifications are changed, for maintaining compatibility with contents edited before the change of specifications can be described in said menu describing file.
Also, a preferable mode is one wherein the file decoding unit reads the existing servicing definition result files when the existing servicing definition result files are edited, while referencing to the menu data, and if specifications are changed, expands the service tree structure data on the storage device while automatically replacing with contents stored in the menu data.
Also, a preferable mode is one wherein, even if an interface including libraries corresponded by the code generating unit is changed, by reading the existing servicing definition result file in a new environment of the menu describing file, automatic construction of the service tree structure data to new specifications and a final goal of creating the generating coding file to new specifications are made possible.
Furthermore, a preferable mode is one wherein the file decoding program retrieves information corresponding to one syntax tree of the service tree structure data from the servicing definition result file, creates a syntax tree constituting one factor of the service tree structure data using the retrieved information, makes a check on the menu data as to if the created syntax tree is a syntax tree that is able to become a parent, and if the present syntax tree is able to be a parent, creates a form of a tree structure by linkage with a child syntax tree, makes a check of the menu data as to if there is a compatibility information description of created syntax tree after the completion of linkage with the child syntax tree or if the present syntax tree does not become a parent, re-constructs a syntax tree in accordance with the compatibility information description existing in the menu data and, if the compatibility information description exists, makes a check on as to whether information about the servicing definition result file is terminated or not after the reconstruction of said syntax tree or if no compatibility information description exists, and if the information is not terminated, repeats processing following processing of retrieving information corresponding to one syntax tree of the service tree structure data from the servicing definition result file.